Synergic mitigation of saline-alkaline stress in wheat plant by silicon and Enterobacter sp. FN0603

Although microorganisms and silicon are well documented as factors that mitigate salt stress, their effect mitigating saline-alkaline stress in plants remains unknown. In this study, wheat plant seeds were treated with silicon, Enterobacter sp. FN0603 alone and in combination of both. Wheat seeds were soaked in silicon and bacterial solutions and sown in pots containing artificial saline-alkaline soils to compare the effects among all treatments. The results showed that the treatments with silicon and FN0603 alone significantly changed plant morphology, enhanced the rhizosphere soil nutrient content and enzyme activities, improved some important antioxidant enzyme activities (e.g., superoxide dismutase) and the contents of small molecules (e.g., proline) that affected osmotic conditions in the top second leaves. However, treatment with silicon and FN0603 in combination significantly further increased these stress tolerance indexes and eventually promoted the plant growth dramatically compared to the treatments with silicon or FN0603 alone (p < 0.01), indicating a synergic plant growth-promoting effect. High relative abundance of strain FN0603 was detected in the treated plants roots, and silicon further improved the colonization of FN0603 in stressed wheat roots. Strain FN0603 particularly when present in combination with silicon changed the root endophytic bacterial and fungal communities rather than the rhizosphere communities. Bipartite network analysis, variation partitioning analysis and structure equation model further showed that strain FN0603 indirectly shaped root endophytic bacterial and fungal communities and improved plant physiology, rhizosphere soil properties and plant growth through significantly and positively directing FN0603-specific biomarkers (p < 0.05). This synergetic effect of silicon and plant growth-promoting microorganism in the mitigation of saline-alkaline stress in plants via shaping root endophyte community may provide a promising approach for sustainable agriculture in saline-alkaline soils

PD-L1 expression in glioblastoma, the clinical and prognostic significance: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis

Background: The clinical and prognostic value of programmed death-ligand 1, PD-L1, in glioblastoma (GBM) remains controversial. The present study aimed to identify the expression of PD-L1 for its prognostic value in glioblastoma. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed using the PubMed and CNKI databases. The overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) of GBM was analyzed based on Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Furthermore, Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs were summarized for clinicopathological parameters. The statistical analysis was using RevMan 5.3 software. Results: The meta-analysis was performed by using total nine studies including 806 patients who had glioblastoma. The pooled results indicated that PD-L1 expression in tumour tissues was significantly related to a poor OS (HR=1.63, 95%CI: 1.19-2.24, P=0.003, random effects model) with heterogeneity (I2=51%). In subgroup analyses, PD-L1 positivity was significantly associated with a worse OS for patients of American and Asian regions, but not for those of European regions. Moreover, PD-L1 expression implied a trend toward the mutation status of the IDH1 gene (coding the Isocitrate Dehydrogenase (NADP(+))-1 protein) (HR=9.92, 95%CI: 1.85-53.08, P=0.007, fixed effects model). However, the prediction overall survival (OS) of the patients showed that PD-L1 expression was independent from other clinicopathological features, such as gender, age and tumour progression/recurrence. Conclusions: Our analyses indicated that high expression of PD-L1 in glioblastoma tumour tissues is associated with poor survival of patients, and PD-L1 may act as a prognostic predictor and an effective therapeutic target for glioblastoma

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Advances of radiolabeled GRPR ligands for PET/CT imaging of cancers

Abstract GRPR is a type of seven-transmembrane G-protein coupled receptor that belongs to the bombesin protein receptor family. It is highly expressed in various cancers, including prostate cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, and so on. As a result, molecular imaging studies have been conducted using radiolabeled GRPR ligands for tumor diagnosis, as well as monitoring of recurrence and metastasis. In this paper, we provided a comprehensive overview of relevant literature from the past two decades, with a specific focus on the advancements made in radiolabeled GRPR ligands for imaging prostate cancer and breast cancer

Compositing Two-Dimensional Materials with TiO₂ for Photocatalysis

Energy shortage and environmental pollution problems boost in recent years. Photocatalytic technology is one of the most effective ways to produce clean energy—hydrogen and degrade pollutants under moderate conditions and thus attracts considerable attentions. TiO2 is considered one of the best photocatalysts because of its well-behaved photo-corrosion resistance and catalytic activity. However, the traditional TiO2 photocatalyst suffers from limitations of ineffective use of sunlight and rapid carrier recombination rate, which severely suppress its applications in photocatalysis. Surface modification and hybridization of TiO2 has been developed as an effective method to improve its photocatalysis activity. Due to superior physical and chemical properties such as high surface area, suitable bandgap, structural stability and high charge mobility, two-dimensional (2D) material is an ideal modifier composited with TiO2 to achieve enhanced photocatalysis process. In this review, we summarized the preparation methods of 2D material/TiO2 hybrid and drilled down into the role of 2D materials in photocatalysis activities

Path Analysis of Quantitative Characters for Mactra veneriformis with Different Ages in Geligang

Mactra veneriformis is a common economic benthic shellfish with high nutritional value and is widely distributed in the Shandong and Liaoning provinces. Geligang is located in the northern part of Liaodong Bay. It is formed by the water impact of Shuangtaizi and Liaohe River. It has an area of approximately 10 000 hm2 with a fertile substrate. It is an important habitat of beach shellfish, such as M. veneriformis. Studies on the influencing factors of wild population quality traits and their correlation with morphological traits are helpful for developing genetic breeding of marine shellfish. To analyze the effects of morphological traits on quality traits of M. veneriformis at different ages in Geligang, the shell length (SL), shell width (SW), shell height (SH), body weight (BW), and soft tissue wet weight (RW) of 1–3 years old M. veneriformis were analyzed using correlation analysis, path analysis, and multiple regression analysis. The M. veneriformis used in the experiment was obtained from the Geliang in Liaodong Bay in September 2022. A total of 80 1-year-old, 104 2-year-old, and 168 3-year-old M. veneriformis were obtained. The results showed that the morphological traits of M. veneriformis at different growth stages had different contributions to quality traits, and there were significant differences (P 0.05) and was eliminated. The optimal regression equation of quantitative traits to qualitative traits of 1–3 year-old M. veneriformis was established. The results showed that when BW was the target trait, SW was the main selection trait and SL was the auxiliary selection trait for 1–3 year-old M. veneriformis. When RW was the target trait, SW should be the main selection trait for 1-year-old M. veneriformis, supplemented by SL. The SL should be the main selection trait for both 2- and 3-year-old M. veneriformis, but the SW was the auxiliary selection trait for 2-year-old M. veneriformis, while the SH was for 3-year-old M. veneriformis. In this study, correlation analysis, path analysis, and multiple regression analysis were performed on the morphological traits and quality traits of 1–3 years old M. veneriformis to determine the key morphological traits affecting the quality traits of M. veneriformis at different ages. In this study, the R2 values of the morphological traits of 1- and 2-year-old M. veneriformis (0.898 and 0.859, respectively) were greater than 0.850, indicating that the main factors affecting the body weight of living M. veneriformis were found. However, the R2 value of the morphological traits of 3-year-old M. veneriformis (0.815) was below 0.850, indicating that there may be other influencing traits in addition to the traits analyzed in this study. The reason may be that with the growth of M. veneriformis, the thickness of the shell and the effect on the weight of the living body gradually increase. In this study, the R2 values of morphological traits of 1–3 years old M. veneriformis (0.738, 0.648, and 0.538, respectively) on the wet weight of soft tissue were all below 0.850, indicating that there were other key factors affecting the wet weight of soft tissue. The age of sexual maturity of the M. veneriformis is at 1 year. The development of the gonad in the soft part may be closely related to the size of the wet weight of the soft tissue. The sampling period is mainly in the proliferation to depletion period of the gonad development of M. veneriformis. The gonad development is simultaneously affected by the environment. These results can provide reference for breeding M. veneriformis and the selection of parent shellfish

Progesterone Induces Apoptosis and Steroidogenesis in Porcine Placental Trophoblasts

Placentation and placental steroidogenesis are important for pregnancy and maternal–fetal health. As pregnancy progresses, the main site of progesterone (P4) synthesis changes from the corpus luteum to the placenta, in which placental trophoblasts are the main cell type for P4 synthesis. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of P4 on apoptosis and steroidogenesis in porcine placental trophoblasts and the underlying molecular mechanisms. Porcine placental trophoblasts were treated with different concentrations of P4 for 48 h in a serum-free medium in vitro. Cell number, steroidogenesis, and relevant gene and protein expression levels were detected. A high dose of P4 (10.0 μM) significantly increased P4 (p < 0.01), androstenedione (p < 0.05), testosterone (p < 0.05), and estradiol (p < 0.05) production in porcine placental trophoblasts compared with that in control cells, while a low dose of P4 (1 × 10−3 μΜ) had no marked impact on steroid production. The mRNA expression of apoptosis-related genes (CASP3, CASP8, and Bax) (p < 0.05) and steroidogenesis-related genes (CYP11A1, CYP19A1, and StAR) (p < 0.01) was upregulated, and the expression of HSD3B and HSD17B4 was inhibited (p < 0.05) in the porcine placental trophoblasts treated with high doses of P4. Low doses of P4 had a lighter effect on gene expression than high doses. The expression of apoptosis-related proteins CASP3 (p < 0.05), and Bax (p < 0.01) and steroidogenesis-related proteins CYP19A1 (p < 0.05) and StAR (p < 0.01) was raised, but the proliferation-related protein CCND2 (p < 0.01) was downregulated in the pTr cells treated with high dose of P4. In comparison, a low dose of P4 inhibited the expression of Bax, CYP11A1 (all p < 0.01), and CCND2 (p < 0.05), but the expression of CASP3 (p < 0.05) and StAR (p < 0.01) was upregulated. In summary, excessive P4 can induce the apoptosis of porcine placental trophoblasts and lead to abnormal steroidogenesis in the placenta and hormone imbalance

Design, construction and preliminary test of a prototype of a heat-driven air-conditioning system integrated with marine aerosol removal

Hot and humid air with a high marine aerosol content, which is known as 3-high air and is ubiquitous in tropical coastal areas and islands, deteriorates living environments and severely damages human health. A novel type of heat-driven air-conditioning system integrated with marine aerosol removal (AC-MAR) is proposed in this study to treat 3-high air. An integrated prototype with an air treatment capacity of 3000 m3/h is designed and constructed. Function and performance tests on the integrated prototype are performed using auxiliary subsystems, including a marine atmospheric environment simulation subsystem, a heating and cooling water subsystem, and a measurement and control subsystem. The test results show that the integrated prototype has a fresh air treatment capacity of 3000 m3/h, where the fresh air state is 80% RH@30 °C. Air processing using the integrated prototype produces a supply air state of 55% RH@18 °C and decreases the aerosol content by over 94.7%. The system coefficient of performance (COP) is 0.4. Test results show that the proposed method/prototype is especially suitable for tropical islands with prominent energy supply shortages and problems associated with 3-high air

Differential Paralog-Specific Expression of Multiple Small Subunit Proteins Cause Variations in Rpl42/eL42 Incorporation in Ribosome in Fission Yeast

Ribosomes within a cell are commonly viewed as biochemically homogenous RNA–protein super-complexes performing identical functions of protein synthesis. However, recent evidence suggests that ribosomes may be a more dynamic macromolecular complex with specialized roles. Here, we present extensive genetic and molecular evidence in the fission yeast S. pombe that the paralogous genes for many ribosomal proteins (RPs) are functionally different, despite that they encode the same ribosomal component, often with only subtle differences in the sequences. Focusing on the rps8 paralog gene deletions rps801d and rps802d, we showed that the mutant cells differ in the level of Rpl42p in actively translating ribosomes and that their phenotypic differences reside in the Rpl42p level variation instead of the subtle protein sequence difference between Rps801p and Rps802p. Additional 40S ribosomal protein paralog pairs also exhibit similar phenotypic differences via differential Rpl42p levels in actively translating ribosomes. Together, our work identifies variations in the Rpl42p level as a potential form of ribosome heterogeneity in biochemical compositions and suggests a possible connection between large and small subunits during ribosome biogenesis that may cause such heterogeneity. Additionally, it illustrates the complexity of the underlying mechanisms for the genetic specificity of ribosome paralogs